Okaz/Saudi Gazette MAKKAH — The legitimate government in Yemen has foiled a plot by the Houthis and the forces loyal to defunct president Ali Abdullah Saleh to politicize the pilgrimage, Yemeni Minister of Endowments and Guidance Fouad Omar Sheikh Abu Bakr has said. Abu Bakr, who is the head of the Yemeni Haj mission, said the Houthis enlisted 47 people as organizers so as to facilitate their entry into Makkah and the holy sites. "Their devilish plot was discovered and foiled and we immediately barred them from undertaking the journey for Haj," the minister said. Abu Bakr revealed that the Saudi authorities had sought the names of the organizers when the plot was uncovered. The minister said, with the help of the Kingdom, a new data center will be established in the Saudi city of Sharourah to scrutinize the Yemeni pilgrims so as to prevent any Houthi infiltration. He said six passport scanners have been installed in the center which has so far processed about 15,000 passports. Abu Bakr said the old data center in Sanaa, which is being controlled by the Houthis, stands cancelled. "Our great concern is the security of the Kingdom. After thorough scrutiny, 18 Haj travel agencies, which were providing services to the Yemeni pilgrims, were blacklisted on suspicion of having close coordination with the Houthis," he said. According to the minister, a total of 104 agencies and Haj companies will provide services to the 19,000 Yemeni pilgrims expected to perform the Haj this year. Secretary General of the National Coalition of the Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces, Abdul Ilah Al-Fahd, who is the head of the Syrian Haj mission, has also deplored any attempt to politicize Haj that is in clear violation of the noble values of the pilgrimage. "The attempts by the Houthis and Iranian clergy to politicize the Haj is an expression of their vindictiveness against the Kingdom." he said. He said about 12,000 Syrian pilgrims will perform the Haj this year. He explained that the Syrian pilgrims obtained their Haj visas from Saudi Arabian diplomatic and consular missions in Turkey, Jordan, Lebanon and Egypt. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Call and Guidance has launched an awareness campaign to enlighten the guests of God about the correct methods of performing the Haj rituals. Minister, Sheikh Saleh Bin Abdulaziz Al-Ashaikh said under the campaign, millions of booklets, pamphlets, video films and CDs in about 32 various languages will be distributed among the pilgrims. Al-Ashaikh said more than 110 TV space channels will participate in the execution of the ministry's Haj awareness campaign.
